Image Credit:
Pixabay
Botanical Name
Citrullus lanatus
Grown as
Toxicity
Sun Exposure
Water Needs
Height
Spread
Soil pH
Bloom Time
Flower Color
Special Features
Resilience
Plant Type
Planting
When to Plant Watermelons
- In cool climates with short growing seasons, start seeds indoors 2 to 3 weeks before your last frost date. Plan to transplant seedlings into the garden about 2 weeks after that date or when the soil has warmed to at least 65°F (18°C).
- In warmer climates with long growing seasons, sow seeds directly outdoors 1 to 2 weeks after your last frost date, as long as the soil temperature has warmed to at least 65°F (18°C).
- Young watermelon plants can also be bought from nurseries. Plant these after there is no longer a chance of frost; they are very tender. Watch the local forecast and err on the side of caution! Consider laying black plastic over your planting area to warm the soil even more.
- Tip: Starting with young plants can result in an earlier harvest (usually up to 2 weeks earlier), so consider buying young plants, particularly if you live in a cooler climate.
Choosing and Preparing a Planting Site
- Amend soil with aged manure, seaweed, and/or compost before planting. Watermelons are heavy feeders, meaning they need soil that is fertile and has a high nutrient level. Learn more about soil amendments and preparing soil for planting.
- Watermelons do best in loamy, somewhat sandy, well-drained soil. They can struggle in soil that contains too much clay and doesn’t drain well.
- Watermelons prefer a soil pH between 6.0 and 7.5 (“slightly acidic to neutral”).
- Watermelons need A LOT of space—up to 20 square feet per plant. Their vines need room to sprawl, so plant them in a place where they won’t crowd out other crops.
- Growing the vines in raised rows, known as hills, ensures good drainage and will hold the sun’s heat longer.
- Plan to space the plants 2-3 feet apart in a 5-foot-wide hill.
- If you’re growing in traditional rows, space them at least 6 feet apart.
How to Plant Watermelons
- Sow seeds 1/2 to 1 inch deep outdoors or 1/4 to 1/2 inch deep in seed-starting pots indoors.
- Tip: To allow for more root growth, use larger starting pots than you would for most seeds. Also, consider using compostable pots that can be cut away or planted directly in the garden, as this will minimize the risk of damaging seedlings’ tender roots during transplanting.
- If direct seeding outdoors, sow 4 to 6 seeds per hill, eventually thinning to 2 to 3 seedlings.
Transplanting Seedlings
- Handle watermelon seedlings with extreme care when you transplant. Their roots are very fragile, so try not to disturb the soil when removing them from pots.
- After transplanting, cover the plants with row covers to keep pests at bay. Remember to remove the row covers when you see both male and female flowers on the vine, as pollinators will need to access the flowers.
- Find even more tips for planting melons in your home garden.
Growing
Watering Watermelons
- Watering is very important—from planting until fruit begins to form. While melon plants are growing, blooming, and setting fruit, they need 1 to 2 inches of water per week.
- Keep soil moist but not waterlogged. Water at the vine’s base in the morning, and try to avoid wetting the leaves and avoid overhead watering. Reduce watering once fruit is growing. Dry weather produces the sweetest melon.
Fertilizing
- If you choose to fertilize (and many do), make sure it delivers more nitrogen than phosphorus and potassium, as this will encourage leaf and vine growth. However, after flowering begins, use a fertilizer with less nitrogen to instead encourage flowers and fruit. We like to use a seaweed-based fertilizer.
Flowering and Fruiting
- Vines produce male and female flowers separately on the same plant. They often begin producing male flowers several weeks before the females appear. Do not be concerned if the male flowers fall off. The female flowers (which have a swollen bulb at the base) will stay on the vine and bear fruit.
- Blossoms require pollination to set fruit, so be kind to the bees!
- As the fruit is ripening, prevent rotting by gently lifting it and putting cardboard or straw between the fruit and the soil.
General Watermelon Care Tips
- Mulching with black plastic or straw around the plants will serve multiple purposes: it will warm the soil, hinder weed growth, and keep developing fruits off the soil.
- Pruning generally isn’t necessary for watermelon plants, but vine productivity may be improved if you do not allow lateral (side) vines to grow and stick to the main vine. When the plant is young, just cut off the end buds as they form (before the side shoots become vines). You can also pinch off some blossoms to focus the energy on fewer melons (though it’s challenging to kill off a potential fruit).
Types
- ‘Golden Midget’: 70 days to maturity. Bears petite, yellow-skinned, 3-pound melons with pink flesh. Good for northern gardeners.
- ‘Sugar Baby’: 80 days to maturity. Produces 10-pound melons with bright red flesh. This variety of smaller fruit can be planted just 4 feet apart.
- ‘Sweet Beauty’: 80 days to maturity. A 2004 All-America Selection. Bears 6-pound, oblong melons with red flesh.
Watermelon plants should be spaced 3 to 5 feet apart.
I am in the southern part of Nigeria, i planted watermelon and it started well, but after producing fruit, It started rusting and some are even cracking. Please what can i do to prevent these terrible damage to my farm? at least almost 45 percent of the fruits are affected, please help.
First looks like you don't give enough water and food to them, you must prepare you soil before planting, make a canal about 1 feet deep x 2 feet wide, start with manure mix with hay or grass, then put some sand and after mix good dirt with compost, try to make elevated beds for them about a feet high you can plant 4 plants in a 9 feet bed in between you can plant beans or peas to feed the grown, then live 9 feet free where you can plant other crops, and again 4 watermelons in a 9 feet bed, if you need more information about Poly Culture feel free to contact me B r o t h e r a y i n j e s u s at p r i e s t dot c o m I will be more than happy to help you! I hope this tip help a lot of people. The Peace of Our Good Lord Be with You All!
It sounds like charcoal rot. There are no effective controls for this fungus. Try altering irrigation to prevent water stress. This may alleviate the problem.
We live in Central fl, and planted jubilee water melons in grow box's. have 3 and 4 vines in both box's.
Have lots of fruit the size of quarters now, doing well. The leaves are looking a little dry and some look wilted. We water 2 times a day down the tubes. When planting we added a rather large row of slow release Fertilizer down the middle. Do I need to do any thing else?
Make sure the water is at the proper level (including, not too high). Watermelons may wilt during the heat of the day, but should perk back up at night. If not, check for pests such as aphids or squash bugs, or the squash vine borer. Fusarium wilt can also cause vines to wilt at midday, with leaf margins drying, but hopefully that's not the case with your plants. As the plants grow, they will need support--provide trellising, and support the fruit as it grows.
i have about three acres of watermelon can be able to get a good market were i can sale at once.
Are Carlina cross sweet melon.? 1st time farmer
Carolina Cross is a giant watermelon. You can see an example on www.burpee.com/
I live here in South Florida, Zone 10,
I planted watermelon 1 month ago, March, I have a nice vine growing now. How much direct sun should this plant get? Should I have it grow on the ground or set up a trellis?
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